Succulents and More™

One of my favorite plants from our recent Santa Barbara trip to San Marcos Growers is Agave horrida . The clone most frequently seen in cultivation, tissue-cultured by Altman Plants, is very nice ( here is Kyle’s specimen ), but the San Marcos plants are even more beautiful: Agave horrida from San Marcos Growers Take a good look at the photo above, especially at the marginal teeth and the spines at the end of the leaf tips. They’re light gray, right? Imagine my surprise when I watered my plant: Same plant with wet teeth and spines Whaaaat? The teeth and spines are almost black now! Here’s a short video that shows the transformation even better: What kind of alchemy is that? I knew it had to be an optical phenomenon, and Google provided the answer: Agave teeth and spines change color when wet primarily because the water temporarily alters the way light reflects through their translucent outer layers. This highlights the underlying pigments and microscopic textures, creating a deeper, ...

Sometimes it seems not much is happening, but when I look at my photos, I realize there’s more going on than I give the garden, the plants, and myself credit for. On that note, another “This and that” post with random sightings that I hope you’ll find interesting. BROMELIAD FLOWERS I’ve lost most of the tags on my bromeliads so I can’t tell you what these are, other than Neoregelia and Billbergia , but the flowers are cool because they’re so different from the other kinds of flowers I usually see. Many neoregelias produce a flush of color in the center just before they start to bloom The flowers themselves are tiny and barely emerge from the cup. The leaves blush in vibrant colors to attract pollinators, which might otherwise have a hard time finding the inconspicuous flowers. In contrast to neoregelias, billbergia flowers are highly visible They emerge from the center on a long stem and feature colorful petals (red in this case) and bracts (greenish yellow, pink, and purple on this o...

When my frequent partner-in-crime Kyle and I were in Santa Barbara at the very end of January , we had the opportunity to visit San Marcos Growers (SMG), arguably the most extraordinary wholesale nursery in California, for what we thought was one last time. After 46 years in operation, SMG had closed its gates on December 23, 2025; the 23-acre property had been sold to be developed for affordable housing. (If you’re interested in learning more about SMG, its history, and its legacy, read my post from February.) I found two Google Earth/Google Streets images that show the nursery prior to August 2025 when they were still in full operation. The shade houses and growing grounds on the far side of San Marcos Road were still very much there: Prior to August 2025: shade houses and growing area on the far side of San Marcos Road still there The area with the shade houses was the first to be torn down. In November 2025 it looked like this: November 2025: area cleared for construction Ignore ...